DVIR requirements
What a driver vehicle inspection report must contain, who signs it, what the carrier has to do about it and how long it is kept — quoted from 49 CFR 396.11 and 396.13 with the paragraph numbers, so you can check any of it against the regulation.
A no-defect day does not require a report
This is the most commonly over-complied-with rule in Part 396. The regulation says plainly: “Drivers are not required to prepare a report if no defect or deficiency is discovered by or reported to the driver.” The post-trip report is triggered by a defect, not by the end of a shift.
Plenty of carriers require a report every day anyway, and that is a perfectly reasonable policy choice — it produces a cleaner record and a habit that does not depend on a driver’s judgement about what counts as a defect. Worth knowing which of the two you are doing: following the regulation, or exceeding it on purpose.
49 CFR 396.11(a)(2)(i)
The 11 parts a report must cover
396.11(a)(1) says a report covers “at least” these. It is a floor, not a checklist to stop at.
- 01Service brakes, including trailer brake connections
- 02Parking brake
- 03Steering mechanism
- 04Lighting devices and reflectors
- 05Tires
- 06Horn
- 07Windshield wipers
- 08Rear vision mirrors
- 09Coupling devices
- 10Wheels and rims
- 11Emergency equipment
A report is prepared at the end of each day's work, per vehicle
49 CFR 396.11(a)(1)
Every motor carrier must require its drivers to report, and every driver must prepare a report in writing at the completion of each day's work on each vehicle operated. A driver who runs more than one vehicle in a day prepares a report for each of them.
The driver signs it
49 CFR 396.11(a)(2)(ii)
The driver must sign the report. On two-driver operations only one driver needs to sign, provided both agree as to the defects or deficiencies identified.
The carrier must repair before the vehicle runs again
49 CFR 396.11(a)(3)(i)
Prior to requiring or permitting a driver to operate a vehicle, the carrier or its agent must repair any defect or deficiency listed on the report that would be likely to affect the safety of operation.
Three months, for three documents
49 CFR 396.11(a)(4)
The carrier must keep the inspection report, the certification of repairs, and the certification of the driver's review for three months from the date the written report was prepared. It is three artefacts, not one.
Before driving, the driver reviews the last report
49 CFR 396.13
Before driving, the driver must be satisfied the vehicle is in safe operating condition, review the last inspection report where 396.11(a)(2)(i) requires one, and sign to acknowledge the review and the certification that repairs were done.
Who the section does not apply to
396.11(a)(5) excepts a private motor carrier of passengers (nonbusiness), a driveaway-towaway operation, and certain other operations. Intermodal equipment tendered by an intermodal equipment provider is handled separately rather than under this paragraph. If you think you fall into one of these, read the exception text itself rather than a summary of it — including this one.
Source: 49 CFR 396.11 and 396.13, retrieved from the Electronic Code of Federal Regulations at ecfr.gov. This page quotes the regulation as a reference and is not legal advice; Part 396 has been amended, so check the current text before relying on it operationally.
Tezify captures inspection reports from the driver app, holds the repair and review certifications against the same vehicle, and keeps them for the retention period without anyone filing anything. See how that works, or read the hours-of-service rules.